what is adpation in plants and what are it types
Answers
Answer:
Adaptations are the quality that appears in the plants or animal species, which turn out to improve their survival chances in a particular environment. These species starts producing more successful offspring for that environment. The changes can be physical as well as behavioural.
Plants are found everywhere on the Earth : mountains,rivers,oceans,land,water,desert .These places are different from each other. Some of these places receive more rainfall while some places are very dry. Some places experience snowfall and are very cold while some places experience high temperature and humid conditions. The soil also differs from place to place. It can be sandy, clayey or loamy. Different types of soils can hold different amount of water and nutrients. Hence, plants develop special features to live successfully in their unique surroundings. This helps them to survive and grow. An adaptation is a change in the body or behaviour of an organism that helps it to survive. For example, a cactus that has adapted to live in deserts cannot grow in marshy land. Similarly, pine tree will not grow in the desert. All living things, animals and plants, adapt to their surroundings to survive. The natural home of a plant or an animal is called its habitat.
ADAPTATIONS IN PLANTS:
Plants can be placed under two major groups according to their habitat.There are →
i)Terrestrial plants: Plants that grow on land are called terrestrial plants.
ii)Aquatic plants: Plants that grow in water are called aquatic plants.
Terrestrial Plants:
Terrestrial plants are found in different types of terrestrial habitats such as deserts, marshes, plains, forests, grasslands and coastal regions.Plant that grow in land are called Xerophytes.
Plains:
plains mostly have a moderate climate. It is neither too hot (us in the deserts)
nor too cold (as in the hills). Plains receive sufficient rainfall.
Trees such as peepal and banyan are commonly found in the plains. They shed their leaves in winter season to protect themselves from the cold weather. Such trees are called deciduous trees. In spring season, new leaves grow on these trees.
Trees such as coconut, mango,sheesham and teak grow in hot and damp regions. They are evergreen trees.
Grasslands:
Grasslands are large areas of land covered with grasses and wild flowers. The plants are adapted to develop deep roots in order to absorb water from deep in the soil. This makes the soil rich in nutrients and suitable for farming. Roots also bind the soil together. Grasslands receive very less rainfall. Therefore, the amount of tall trees or bushes are very less in grasslands. However, small trees are scattered throughout the grasslands. Foxtail and ryegrass are some examples of plants that are found in grasslands.
Coastal regions:
Certain regions near sea coasts receive high rainfall and the water can be salty. Coconut, rubber and pepper are some plants that grow in these regions. Coastal trees do not shed their leaves in winter season.
Aquatic plants:
You must have seen plants growing in ponds or lakes Plants that grow in
are called hydrophytes or aquatic plants. There are three types of
aquatic plants,floating plants, fixed plants and underwater plants
Floating plants:
These plants float freely in water.
These plants can Boat with the flow
of water as they do not have roots
Water hyacinth and water lettuce
(Pistia) are some examples of floating plants.
Floating plants have spongy bodies that are filled by air.
This makes them light and helps them to
Boat on water. Duckweed (Wolffia) is another example of a floating plant
Their floating leaves have chlorophyll only on the top of the surface.
Fixed plants:
special roots These plants have roots that are fixed to the
rosewood and mud at the bottom of the ponds. They have
adapted so that they can float, get enough air
and sunlight to make food and prevent
damage by flowing water. Lotus and water
lily are some examples of fixed aquatic plants.
Underwater plants:
Some plants remain completely beneath the surface of water. They are also called submerged plants. They have adapted to breathe under water.
Hydrilla and tape grass (Vallisneria) are underwater plants. Their roots fix them to the bottom of the pond. They have thin, flexible stems and finely dissected leaves that affer little resistance to water currents. Hydrilla has tiny leaves, while tape grass has narrow, ribbon-like leaves which bend in the flowing water.
They breathe through small air spaces present in their stem. The leaves of underwater plants do not have stomata. These plants are adapted to absorb carbon dioxide and oxygen from the water.